SimpleX Chat is a cross-platform end-to-end (E2E) encrypted instant messaging app and console application. The app does not require phone number, email address, or any other external identification.[1]

SimpleX Chat
DeveloperSimpleX Chat Ltd
Initial release12 January 2022; 3 years ago (2022-01-12)
Repositorygithub.com/simplex-chat/simplex-chat
Written inHaskell, Kotlin
Operating system
Available inEnglish, German, Spanish, Chinese, Turkish, French, Italian, Russian, Ukrainian, Japanese, Polish, Hungarian, Czech, Dutch, Finnish, Bulgarian, Thai
TypeEncrypted voice calling, video calling and instant messaging
LicenseGNU Affero General Public License
Websitesimplex.chat

SimpleX applications are completely open source and available for Android, iOS, Windows, macOS operating systems, and various Linux distributions.[2]

History

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The messaging app was developed from 2020 to 2022, according to GitHub releases.[3] On January 12, 2022 there was an official release which introduced a terminal application featuring the implementation of the SMP protocol developed by SimpleX Chat Ltd.[4]

In July 2024, the American cybersecurity firm Trail of Bits conducted an independent security audit of the SMP protocol version 6.1.[5]

According to The Guardian, following the arrest of Pavel Durov in France in 2024 many far-right groups have migrated from Telegram to SimpleX due to hightened privacy concerns.[6]

Russia

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In September 2024 the app was blocked by Russian authorities (Roskomnadzor).[7] In Septemper 2025, Tagansky court of Moscow fined the owning company SimpleX Chat Ltd. for "failure to fulfill the obligations of an instant messaging service provider", a violation of the law requiring every messaging application to collaboratee with state authorities and, if requested, provide encryption keys for certain communications.[8]

Features

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SimpleX Chat doesn't require any identification data to sign up and use the application. Unlike other instant messaging solutions, a SimpleX user isn't assigned a rigid unique identification number, which makes large-scale data scraping more difficult. All the private messages are E2E encrypted by SMP protocol, group messages work like multiple P2P messages and are also E2E encrypted , however that makes it harder to make larger chats.

References

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  1. ^ "SimpleX Chat: private and secure messenger without any user IDs (not even random)". simplex.chat. Retrieved 2025-11-09.
  2. ^ "Download SimpleX apps". simplex.chat. Retrieved 2025-11-09.
  3. ^ simplex-chat. "Releases · simplex-chat/simplex-chat". GitHub. Retrieved 2025-11-09.
  4. ^ simplex-chat. "Release v1.0.0 · simplex-chat/simplex-chat". GitHub. Retrieved 2025-11-09.
  5. ^ "SimpleX network: cryptographic design review by Trail of Bits, v6.1 released with better calls and user experience". simplex.chat. Retrieved 2025-11-09.
  6. ^ Gilbert, David. "Neo-Nazis Are Fleeing Telegram for Encrypted App SimpleX Chat". Wired. ISSN 1059-1028. Retrieved 2025-11-09.
  7. ^ "Интернет-цензура и блокировка контента российскими регуляторами". ОВД-Инфо (in Russian). Retrieved 2025-11-09.
  8. ^ "Суд оштрафовал двоих владельцев анонимных мессенджеров за неисполнение закона РФ". РАПСИ (in Russian). 2025-09-24. Retrieved 2025-11-09.
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